Almost exclusively on Channel 4 - Top Boy was probably the first one, super 16 with 1.3X anamorphics.

But channel 4 and Film Four have tended to use letterbox a lot for films anyway - far fewer films were pan and scanned. So that softens the audience to accept letter boxed TV drama programming. If they use it for films with minimal complaints then its fine for commissioned drama.

2:1 is okay, but the full 2.39:1 scope ratio seems kinda silly for any project that's destined purely for TV screening. It's just not making good use of the medium.

With the increasing number of common width cinema screens and the fact that with digital projection, scope film use fewer pixels then flat - you could make the same argument about use of scope in theatrical films. As my local multiplex the screen gets smaller for scope films. If we wanted to maximise screen real estate all films should be 1.9:1

I would argue that since TV screens are much bigger then they used to be, scope images can be effective. Different aspect ratio's are a creative choice just as relevant for TV broadcast as it is for cinema. Personally I'd like to see more 2.39:1 telly programs - go do it Felix

Interestingly, the BBC's War & Peace from last year was shot largely with anamorphics with a plan to crop to 16x9 for broadcast. I seem to recall reading that they wanted the character of the anamorphic lenses without actually planning to use the entire frame. I'm actually surprised that isn't done more often.

In a similar vein, several years ago, the "failed" BBC scifi series Outcasts was shot anamorphic on the Arri D21, which I think was the only digital cinema camera at the time to offer a 4:3 sensor to take advantage of 2x anamorphics. I think the producers wanted to broadcast in 2.39.1, but the BBC said no. They did however let them use the full 2.39 frame for the "next time" trailers! At the time, they claimed they were the first ever use of anamorphics for a TV production. Just like War & Peace a few years later, the production team still wanted the other benefits of the anamorphic lenses, even if they were going to throw some of the image on the sides away: http://www.definitio...-broadcast.html